Kelleher looking forward to ‘celebration’ chat and drink after battle

ALL Blacks scrum-half Byron Kelleher would like to “catch up” with some of the Irish team for a drink and chat following tomorrow’s Test at Lansdowne Road.

And he hopes it will be a celebration party after New Zealand complete phase two of their four-part Grand Slam plan.

Kelleher played a crucial role as a substitute for New Zealand in their last encounter in 2002, which ended in a 40-8 victory at Eden Park, Auckland.

He scored the third try and killed off Ireland’s chance of causing an upset which, on the basis of a previous 9-15 loss and a feisty performance in the second Test, looked possible. Well, reasonably possible.

Back then, the Kiwis and the Irish mixed freely at an after-match function, but there was little of that when the Lions toured the Antipodes last summer. He views that as a pity.

After starting against Wales, Kelleher is on the bench tomorrow, but he has bought into Graham Henry’s dream of creating an expanded squad with all the credentials and experience needed to win the 2007 World Cup.

“Not everybody back home likes the idea; some think the All Blacks jersey is being devalued, but I definitely agree that it’s a good thing.

“What the coaches are trying to do, and I think they’re succeeding, is to build up a squad with players challenging for every position.

“If one guy in a particular spot falls over, there is another guy with the required level of experience to slot in. It makes sense to me.”

Kelleher described the atmosphere at the Millennium Stadium as “awesome”, but expects it will be just as intense at Lansdowne Road.

“I think the two grounds us guys have spoken about most in the buildup to the tour were Cardiff and Dublin. I know the Irish will be just as passionate as the Welsh supporters. We’ve just got to turn up and front up on the day.”

Accepting that the All Blacks, based on the result in Cardiff and the fact that they now have a game behind them, should be at some kind of advantage, Kelleher stressed that home advantage shouldn’t be underestimated.

“Hopefully, Ireland will be a little rusty but there is never a guarantee of that. I’m sure, like us, they have been together for some time; they have a lot of experience of playing together and they will know exactly what they have to do to beat us.”

The single-minded approach of the All Blacks was highlighted by Kelleher’s view of the Brian O’Driscoll affair.

“Look, there were a lot of things going on around us, but we had to concentrate on what we were doing ourselves and not worry about outside forces. We had to stay tight as a team and not worry about anything but performing on the field.”

But Kelleher expressed his delight to see northern hemisphere rugby moving on.

“I think Wales and Ireland last year played some exciting rugby. It wasn’t one-dimensional stuff, it was football played with a lot of skill from forwards and backs alike. We’ve been used to that kind of stuff in New Zealand but the northern hemisphere sides are getting on to it and getting a hell of a lot better at it. It makes sides from this side of the world a very real threat these days.”

He singles out Paul O’Connell and Donncha O’Callaghan as having played particularly well in New Zealand, but he believes the Irish will be a more formidable force in the green jersey.

“I think one of the problems about playing for the Lions is that you’re bringing four different cultures, maybe four different styles of play together. I’m sure it’s hard for the players to adapt. We’re looking forward to being in Ireland; the Irish have played consistently, and they bring their own style to the game; they make their own mark.

“We have noted what they’ve achieved in the last few years; they’ve been able to beat England, France and South Africa and ran us very close in one of the two Tests a few years back - so that shows them up in pretty favourable light. The fact that they’re either beating or challenging sides on a regular basis means we have to show them total respect.”